Diarrhea in Rabbits

The first thing you have to do is figure out the possible cause.  It could be food, parasites, stress, or you may never know what brought it on.  Here is how we treat active diarrhea in a rabbit. For the most part, we do not take a rabbit to the vet for this but it DOES warrant a vet visit.  The reason we don't is because we can usually clear it up ourselves and it is less stress on the bunny to move it.

• pull pellets
• strictly feed hay
• add probiotics to water
• clean the bunny's bottom up and check it a couple of times a day for any reoccurring diarrhea
• clip the hair around the vent if needed
• give .02 cc of Toltrazuril
• try to leave the bunny alone so it doesn't get more stressed

If this seems to help, we repeat the same steps the following day.  We only give two days of Toltrazuril though.  By day three we offer pellets back in the diet.  

If the rabbit has coccidia, this will fix it.  If the rabbit ate something that didn't set right with it, the hay should correct it.  If there is something more going on, this is where you would need a fecal done and a vet visit is indeed needed.  Sometimes offering a new veggie to a bunny will cause this.  If it does, do not feed that particular vegetable to your rabbit again. We have a rabbit that gets diarrhea if we feed it peppers but all of the others do just fine with them.  Each bunny is a little different.

If this is a new bunny you just brought home.  Chances are it is stressing from the move.  Leave it alone as much as possible.  Only feed, clean and check it minimal times a day.  If it is not eating, put it in the grass in a playpen/safe area and sit back and watch to see if it will graze.  That  has saved a lot of rabbits for me. I have done this for days at a time and eventually the rabbits decide to get their appetite back and be normal. Only once did it lead to fatal bloat. That case was brought about by medicine though.

I'm not a medical professional but stating what has worked for us in the past. The best choice is to see a licensed exotic veterinarian.  Lots of vets are not rabbit savvy so keep this in mind. Some vets are absolutely great with rabbits and hopefully you are blessed to have one of those nearby.

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Above photos are the supplies we like to have on hand for this emergency.  Bene-Bac Plus is the probiotic we use.  It is the powder form so it has a long shelf life.  It must be changed out every 8 hours.

Toltrazuril is the cocciostat we use as our go to for prevention for coccidia, possible enteritis or any signs of illness that the gut is off.

Corid is a great prevention coccidia med.  It is said not to work as well anymore because it has been over used and rabbits are immune to it.  I have not personally witnessed this problem.  We still use it as a preventative in their water from time to time (5 consecutive days).  

​All of these products are available online in google searches.

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